Electrical connection assembly

ABSTRACT

An electrical connection assembly includes a first electrical member and a locking structure configured to lock the first electrical member to a second electrical member cooperating with the first electrical member. An adjusting sleeve is sheathed on an outer surface of the first electrical member and movable along an axis of the first electrical member. A collar is sheathed on an outer surface of the adjusting sleeve. A connecting bracket is rotatably connected to the collar. The second electrical member includes a first end coupled to the first electrical member and a second end opposite to the first end. The connecting bracket is rotatable to the second end of the second electrical member for limiting the second end of the second electrical member.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims all benefits accruing under 35 U.S.C. § 119 fromChina Patent Application Nos. 202020367900.0, filed on Mar. 20, 2020,and 202010200583.8, filed on Mar. 20, 2020, in the China NationalIntellectual Property Administration, the content of which is herebyincorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to electrical connection, andin particular, to an electrical connection assembly.

BACKGROUND

An electrical plug and an electrical socket are common electricalconnection assemblies. At present, a common electrical socket usuallyincludes a pressing element which can press a pin of the electricalplug, so that the electrical plug and the electrical socket can belocked. The pin of the electrical plug may have a small locking forceand poor stability between the electrical plug and the electricalsocket. Moreover, the pressing element that press on the pin is usuallylocated on the electrical socket, so the overall structure of thepressing element and the electrical socket is small and not convenientfor a user to operate.

SUMMARY

Thus, it is desired to provide an electrical connection assembly tosolve the above problems in the prior art.

Specifically, an embodiment of the present disclosure can include afirst electrical member and a locking structure, and the lockingstructure can be configured to lock the first electrical component to asecond electrical component cooperating with the first electricalcomponent. The locking structure can include an adjustment sleevesheathed on an outer surface of the first electrical member and be ableto move along an axis of the first electrical member; a collar sheathedon an outer surface of the adjusting sleeve; and a connecting bracketrotatably connected to the collar. The second electrical member caninclude a first end coupled to the first electrical member and a secondend opposite to the first end, and the connecting bracket can rotate tothe second end of the second electrical member for limiting the secondend of the second electrical member. When the adjusting sleeve rotatesrelative to the first electrical member and the collar around the axisof the first electrical member and away from the first end of the secondelectrical member, the adjusting sleeve, the collar, and the connectingbracket move along the axis of the first electrical member and away fromthe first end of the second electrical member, resulting in the firstend of the second electrical member locking to the first electricalmember.

Furthermore, the adjusting sleeve can include a sleeve body whose outersurface is provided with a first blocking member and a second blockingmember, and the first blocking member and the second blocking member canabut against both sides of the collar respectively to limit the collarto the sleeve body of the adjusting sleeve.

Furthermore, the first blocking member can include a retaining ringwhich is formed by an end of the sleeve body of the adjusting sleevenear the first end of the second electrical member protruding in aradial direction of the adjusting sleeve.

Furthermore, the second blocking member can include a plurality ofbulges located on an outer surface of the sleeve body.

Furthermore, the retaining ring can have a plurality of gaps.

Furthermore, the sleeve body can be threadably sheathed on an outersurface of the first electrical member.

Furthermore, the sleeve body can be provided with a plurality of strips,and the plurality of strips can be arranged on the outer surface of thesleeve body along an axis of the sleeve body of the adjusting sleeve.

Furthermore, the sleeve body, the first blocking member and the secondblocking member can be an integral structure.

Furthermore, the collar can include a first portion and a second portioncooperating with the first portion, and the first portion and the secondportion can have two ends respectively each of which is equipped with aconnecting convex hook, and the connecting bracket can be rotatablyconnected to the first portion and the second portion by the connectingconvex hook.

Furthermore, a concave-convex structure can be provided between thefirst portion and the second portion, and the concave-convex structurecan be configured to prevent a relative movement between the firstportion and the second portion.

Furthermore, a fastener can be provided at an end of the connectingbracket away from the collar, and the fastener can be configured tolimit the second end of the second electrical member to the connectingbracket.

The electrical connection assembly of the present embodiment has thefollowing advantages. The second end of the second electrical member canbe limited by the connecting bracket, and the adjusting sleeve canrotate relative to the first electrical member and the collar. When theadjusting sleeve rotates relatively to the first electrical member andthe collar around the axis of the first electrical member and away fromthe first end of the second electrical member, the adjusting sleeve, thecollar, and the connecting bracket move along the axis of the firstelectrical member and away from the first end of the second electricalmember. The first end of the second electrical member will be tightlylocked to the first electrical member. That is, the collar and theconnecting bracket can be moved by the adjusting sleeve, and rotation ofthe adjusting sleeve will ensure tight locking of the second electricalmember and the first electrical member. The operation of the lockingstructure is easy, which is convenient for the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical connection assemblyaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an electrical connection assemblyaccording to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an electrical connection assemblyaccording to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an adjusting sleeve of the electricalconnection assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a collar of the electrical connectionassembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a second semicircular body of theelectrical connection assembly of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure will be further described in detail below withreference to the drawings and specific embodiments, in order to betterunderstand the objective, the technical solution and the advantage ofthe present disclosure. It should be understood that the specificembodiments described herein are merely illustrative and are notintended to limit the scope of the disclosure.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as a skilled person in the art would understand.The terminology used in the description of the present disclosure is forthe purpose of describing particular embodiments and is not intended tolimit the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 1, an embodiment of the present disclosure can includea first electrical member 10 and a locking structure 30. The lockingstructure 30 can be configured to lock the first electrical member 10 toa second electrical member cooperating with the first electrical member10 in order to prevent the first electrical member 10 from detachingfrom the second electrical member.

In this embodiment, the locking structure 30 can include an adjustingsleeve 31 sheathed on an outer surface of the first electrical member10, a collar 32 sheathed on an outer surface of the adjusting sleeve 31,and a connecting bracket 33 rotatably connected to the collar 32. Theadjusting sleeve 31 can rotate relative to the first electrical member10 and the collar 32 around an axis 1 of the first electrical member 10.

In this embodiment, referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the first electricalmember 10 can be an electrical plug, and the second electrical member 20can be an electrical socket cooperating with the first electrical member10. Alternatively, the first electrical member 10 can be an electricalsocket, and the second electrical member 20 can be an electrical plug.

The second electrical member 20 can include a first end coupled to thefirst electrical member 10 and a second end opposite to the first end,and the connecting bracket 33 can rotate to the second end of the secondelectrical member 20 for limiting the second end of the secondelectrical member 20. When the adjusting sleeve 31 rotates relative tothe first electrical member 10 and the collar 32 around the axis 1 ofthe first electrical member 10, it can move along the axis 1 of thefirst electrical member 10 and away from the first end of the secondelectrical member 20, as can the collar 32 and the connecting bracket33. Due to the second end of the second electrical member 20 beinglimited to the connecting bracket 33, a movement of the collar 32 andthe connecting bracket 33 can result in the first end of the secondelectrical member tightly locked to the first electrical member 10.

In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 3, the locking structure 30 canfurther include a fastener 34 provided at an end of the connectingbracket 33 away from the collar 32. The fastener 34 can be configured tolimit the second end of the second electrical member 20 to theconnecting bracket. Specifically, the fastener 34 is hinged on the endof the connecting bracket 33 away from the collar 32.

Referring to FIG. 4, the adjusting sleeve 31 can include a sleeve body311 whose outer surface is provided with a first blocking member 312 anda second blocking member 313. The first blocking member 312 and thesecond blocking member 313 can abut against both sides of the collar 32respectively to limit the collar 32 to the sleeve body 311 of theadjusting sleeve 31, so as to achieve the assembly connection betweenthe collar 32 and the adjusting sleeve 31.

It is understood that the collar 32 of the present embodiment can besheathed between the first blocking member 312 and the second blockingmember 313 on the sleeve body 311, and the collar 32 can have aclearance fit with the first blocking member 312 and the second blockingmember 313 to rotate relatively to the sleeve body 311. Therefore, whenthe adjusting sleeve 31 rotates around the axis of the first electricalmember, the collar 32 will move along the axis of the first electricalmember 10, resulting in the connecting bracket 33 moving along the axisof the first electrical member 10 toward or away from the firstelectrical member, which enables a locking state or an unlocking stateof the first electrical member 10 and the second electrical member 20.

In some embodiments, the first blocking member 312 can include aretaining ring which is formed by an end of the sleeve body 311 of theadjusting sleeve 31 near the first end of the second electrical member20 protruding in a radial direction of the adjusting sleeve 31. Thesecond blocking member 313 can include a plurality of bulges located onan outer surface of the sleeve body 311. In one embodiment, theplurality of bulges are perpendicular to the sleeve body 311 and face anend face of the collar 32, thereby ensuring a limitation of theplurality of bulges to the collar 32. It should be noted that the firstblocking member 312 and the second blocking member 313 are not limitedto what is shown in FIG. 4, and it should be apparent to one skilled inthe art that the first blocking member 312 may include one or morebulges or a convex platform with a certain curvature, and the secondblocking member 313 may include a convex ring or a convex platform witha certain curvature.

In some embodiments, the retaining ring has a plurality of gaps 3121 tofacilitate the manufacture of the adjusting sleeve 31. Duringpreparation of the adjusting sleeve 31, the plurality of gaps 3121 canbe configured for de-moulding the adjusting sleeve 31 from a mould. Inother words, the present embodiment facilitates the manufacture of theadjusting sleeve 31 by simplifying the structure of the mould thatcorresponds to the production of the adjusting sleeve 31. As anotherexample, the sleeve body 311, the first blocking member 312 and thesecond blocking member 313 can be an integral structure.

In some embodiments, the sleeve body 311 can be threadably sheathed onan outer surface of the first electrical member 10. For example, aninner peripheral surface of the sleeve body 311 can be provided withinternal screw threads 3111, and the first electrical member 312 can beprovided with external screw threads 11 which cooperate with theinternal screw threads 3111. The sleeve body 311 can be threadablysheathed on an outer surface of the first electrical member 10 by thecooperation of the internal screw threads 3111 and the external screwthreads 11, so that the adjusting sleeve 31 can be threadably sheathedon an outer surface of the first electrical member 10. It should benoted that a length of the internal screw threads 3111 can be setaccording to actual needs. Additionally or alternatively, the length ofthe internal screw threads 3111 can be set to be as short as possible inorder to increase moving distance of the connecting bracket 33 when theadjusting sleeve 31 moves along the axis of the first electrical member10.

Furthermore, the internal screw threads 3111 can be positioned on thesleeve body 311 corresponding to an area between the first blockingmember 312 and the second blocking member 313. This can enable theadjusting sleeve 31 to move from one end of the external screw threads11 to the other end of the external screw threads 11 by rotation,thereby ensuring that the connecting bracket 33 can be moved by theadjusting sleeve 31 to lock the first electrical member 10 and thesecond electrical member 20.

In some embodiments, the sleeve body 311 can be provided with aplurality of strips 314. The plurality of strips 314 can be arranged onthe outer surface of the sleeve body 311 along an axis of the sleevebody 311 of the adjusting sleeve 31. In the process of rotating theadjusting sleeve 31, the hands can catch the plurality of strips 314 inorder to prevent slippage, and it's convenient to rotate the adjustingsleeve 31 relative to the first electrical member 10.

As can be seen above, the collar 32 can be configured to connect theadjusting sleeve 31 and the connecting bracket 33, so that when theadjusting sleeve 31 rotates relative to the first electrical member 10,the connecting bracket 33 can move along the axis of the firstelectrical member 10.

Referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the collar 32 includes a first portion321 and a second portion 322 cooperating with the first portion 321. Thefirst portion 321 and the second portion 322 can have two endsrespectively each of which is equipped with a connecting convex hook323. The connecting bracket 33 can be rotatably connected to the firstportion 321 and the second portion 322 by the connecting convex hook323, thereby ensuring a rotatable connection between the collar 32 andthe connecting bracket 33. For example, the first portion 321 and thesecond portion 322 can be in a semicircular shape. It should be notedthat the first portion 321 and the second portion 322 can be twoportions cooperating with each other and not limited to what is shown inFIG. 5.

Specifically, when the first portion 321 cooperates with the secondportion 322, a connecting convex hook 323 of the first portion 321 and aconnecting convex hook 323 of the second portion 322 are configured topenetrate through the connecting bracket 33 together. The connectingconvex hook 323 can include a hook portion configured for limiting theconnecting bracket 33. The connecting bracket 33 can rotate around theconnecting convex hook 323, so that the connecting bracket 33 can berotatably connected to the collar 32. At the same time, the connectingbracket 33 is able to limit the two connecting convex hooks 323, therebythe first portion 321 and the second portion 322 being an integritystructure and preventing the first portion 321 and the second portion322 from disengaging.

In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 5, a connecting convex column 324can be provided on a circumferential direction of the connecting convexhook 323. The connecting convex column 324 can be configured topenetrate through the connecting bracket 33 together with the connectingconvex hook 323, and a portion of the connecting convex hook 323 and theconnecting convex column 324, which penetrates through the connectingbracket 33 can be against the connecting bracket 33, thereby improvingconnecting stability between the collar 32 and the connecting bracket33. At one end of the first portion 321 or the second portion 322, thenumber of the connecting convex hook 323 can be one, the number of theconnecting convex column 324 can be two, and the two connecting convexcolumns 324 can be separated on either side of the connecting convexhook 323. It should be noted that the number of the connecting convexhook 323 and the number of the connecting convex column 324 are notlimited to what is shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, and it should be apparentto one skilled in the art that the number of the connecting convex hook323 can be two, the number of the connecting convex column 324 can beone; or the number of the connecting convex hook 323 and the number ofthe connecting convex column 324 can be set to other number such as oneor two for both.

Referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, a concave-convex structure can belocated on ends of the first portion 321 and the second portion 322. Theconcave-convex structure can be configured to prevent a relativemovement between the first portion 321 and the second portion 322,thereby confirming the assembly position between the first portion 321and the second portion 322, facilitating the assembly of the firstportion 321 and the second portion 322.

Specifically, the concave-convex structure can include a first convexcolumn 301 provided on one end of the first portion 321 and a firstgroove 302 provided on the other end, and a second groove 303 providedon one end of the second portion 322 and a second convex column 304provided on the other end, wherein the first convex column 301 cancooperate with the second groove 303, and the second convex column 304can cooperate with the first groove 302. In this embodiment, the firstportion 321 and the second portion 322 can be set in the same structureto facilitate the manufacture of the collar 32.

In summary, the second end of the second electrical member can belimited by the connecting bracket, and the adjusting sleeve can rotaterelative to the first electrical member and the collar. When theadjusting sleeve rotates relative to the first electrical member and thecollar around the axis of the first electrical member and away from thefirst end of the second electrical member, the adjusting sleeve, thecollar, and the connecting bracket move along the axis of the firstelectrical member and away from the first end of the second electricalmember. The first end of the second electrical member will be tightlylocked to the first electrical member. That is, the collar and theconnecting bracket can be moved by the adjusting sleeve, and rotating ofthe adjusting sleeve will ensure the tightly locking of the secondelectrical member and the first electrical member. The operation of thelocking structure is easy, which is convenient for the user.

The technical features of the above-described embodiments may becombined in any combination. For the sake of brevity of description, allpossible combinations of the technical features in the above embodimentsare not described. However, as long as there is no contradiction betweenthe combinations of these technical features, all should be consideredas within the scope of this disclosure.

The above-described embodiments are merely illustrative of severalembodiments of the present disclosure, and the description thereof isrelatively specific and detailed, but is not to be construed as limitingthe scope of the disclosure. It should be noted that a number ofvariations and modifications may be made by those skilled in the artwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.Therefore, the scope of the disclosure should be determined by theappended claims.

We claim:
 1. An electrical connection assembly comprising a firstelectrical member and a locking structure configured to lock the firstelectrical member to a second electrical member cooperating with thefirst electrical member, wherein: the locking structure comprises: anadjusting sleeve sheathed on an outer surface of the first electricalmember and movable along an axis of the first electrical member; acollar sheathed on an outer surface of the adjusting sleeve; and aconnecting bracket rotatably connected to the collar, wherein the secondelectrical member comprises a first end coupled to the first electricalmember and a second end opposite to the first end, the connectingbracket is rotatable to the second end of the second electrical memberfor limiting the second end of the second electrical member; when theadjusting sleeve rotates relative to the first electrical member and thecollar around the axis of the first electrical member and away from thefirst end of the second electrical member, the adjusting sleeve, thecollar, and the connecting bracket move along the axis of the firstelectrical member and away from the first end of the second electricalmember, resulting in the first end of the second electrical member beinglocked to the first electrical member.
 2. The electrical connectionassembly of claim 1, wherein the adjusting sleeve comprises a sleevebody whose outer surface is provided with a first blocking member and asecond blocking member, and the first blocking member and the secondblocking member abut against both sides of the collar respectively tolimit the collar to the sleeve body of the adjusting sleeve.
 3. Theelectrical connection assembly of claim 2, wherein the first blockingmember comprises a retaining ring which is formed by an end of thesleeve body of the adjusting sleeve near the first end of the secondelectrical member protruding in a radial direction of the adjustingsleeve.
 4. The electrical connection assembly of claim 2, wherein thesecond blocking member comprises a plurality of bulges located on anouter surface of the sleeve body.
 5. The electrical connection assemblyof claim 3, wherein the retaining ring has a plurality of gaps.
 6. Theelectrical connection assembly of claim 2, wherein the sleeve body isthreadably sheathed on an outer surface of the first electrical member.7. The electrical connection assembly of claim 2, wherein the sleevebody is provided with a plurality of strips, and the plurality of stripsare arranged on the outer surface of the sleeve body along an axis ofthe sleeve body of the adjusting sleeve.
 8. The electrical connectionassembly of claim 2, wherein the sleeve body, the first blocking memberand the second blocking member are an integral structure.
 9. Theelectrical connection assembly of claim 1, wherein the collar comprisesa first portion and a second portion cooperating with the first portion,wherein the first portion and the second portion have two endsrespectively, each of which is equipped with a connecting convex hook,and the connecting bracket is rotatably connected to the first portionand the second portion by the connecting convex hook.
 10. The electricalconnection assembly of claim 9, wherein a concave-convex structure isprovided between the first portion and the second portion, and theconcave-convex structure is configured to prevent a relative movementbetween the first portion and the second portion.
 11. The electricalconnection assembly of claim 1, wherein a fastener is provided at an endof the connecting bracket away from the collar, and the fastener isconfigured to limit the second end of the second electrical member tothe connecting bracket.